X-Com – The Unknown Menace
Chapter Eighteen – Premonitions
RAAF Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch in Roswell Region
No Details of Flying Disk Are Revealed
Roswell Hardware Man and Wife Report Disk Seen
The intelligence office of the 509th Bombardment group at Roswell Army Field announced at noon today, that the field has come into possession of a flying saucer.
According to information released by the department, over authority of Maj. J. A. Marcel, intelligence officer, the disk was recovered on a ranch in the Roswell vicinity, after an unidentified rancher had notified Sheriff Geo. Wilcox, here, that he had found the instrument on his premises.
Major Marcel and a detail from his department went to the ranch and recovered the disk, it was stated.
After the intelligence officer here had inspected the instrument it was flown to higher headquarters.
The intelligence office stated that no details of the saucer's construction or its appearance had been revealed.
Mr. and Mrs. Dan Wilmot apparently were the only persons in Roswell who seen what they thought was a flying disk.
They were sitting on their porch at 105 South Penn. last Wednesday night at about ten o'clock when a large glowing object zoomed out of the sky from the southeast, going in a northwesterly direction at a high rate of speed.
Wilmot called Mrs. Wilmot's attention to it and both ran down into the yard to watch. It was in sight less then a minute, perhaps 40 or 50 seconds, Wilmot estimated.
Wilmot said that it appeared to him to be about 1,500 feet high and going fast. He estimated between 400 and 500 miles per hour.
In appearance it looked oval in shape like two inverted saucers, faced mouth to mouth, or like two old type washbowls placed, together in the same fashion. The entire body glowed as though light were showing through from inside, though not like it would inside, though not like it would be if a light were merely underneath.
From where he stood Wilmot said that the object looked to be about 5 feet in size, and making allowance for the distance it was from town he figured that it must have been 15 to 20 feet in diameter, though this was just a guess.
Wilmot said that he heard no sound but that Mrs. Wilmot said she heard a swishing sound for a very short time.
The object came into view from the southeast and disappeared over the treetops in the general vicinity of six-mile hill.
Wilmot, who is one of the most respected and reliable citizens in town, kept the story to himself hoping that someone else would come out and tell about having seen one, but finally today decided that he would go ahead and tell about it. The announcement that the RAAF was in possession of one came only a few minutes after he decided to release the details of what he had seen.
- Roswell Daily Record, July 8th, 1947
June 6th, 2000
Area 51, Nevada, US
As Lt. Colonel Harris had finished stepping down the ladder the technicians had placed near the cockpit of his F-22, he looked at the plane to check the damage of the dogfight he had just been in. The left wingtip of the advanced fighter had been brushed off by a plasma round fired by the alien large scout he had just downed over Idaho, but besides the nasty look of the wing there seemed to be no other damage.
One of the sergeants assigned to the base's combat support group, wearing a Chi Greek letter on the left breast of his coveralls was also assessing the damage. He cocked his head from one side to the other and simply spoke in a mixture of relief and frustration: "At least there's no damage to the main body, sir. We should be able to get it fixed in no time". Harris turned to him, but the man had already gotten to his work, moving to the offices located in one corner of the massive hangar where the F-22 was standing.
Close to him, Captain Clark had just parked his F-22 and had also gotten off his plane, still holding his helmet on one hand and raking his curly hair with the other. He had managed to hit the UFO with a Phoenix before Harris had stepped in and finished off the alien craft with Amraam missiles. By tomorrow both their planes would sport another half-UFO painted on the fuselage under the cockpit, as both pilots would share the credit for the kill. But Harris didn't really care about personal tallies, although he had already made ace several times and had the highest UFO kill list inside X-Com, and in the world for that matter.
Clark come up to him and spoke. "Fancy flying up there, Harris. I never had seen anyone launch an Amraam on such a tight turn and actually hit the bogey. You should tell it to the Air Force and the manufacturers of the missile, although I'm not sure they would quite believe it". Harris simply shrugged his shoulders and replied: "I wouldn't allow that bastard to gain speed and outrun us". Clark just looked at him, waiting for more, but as he saw the other pilot head out the hangar towards the pilot's area he just joined him and said nothing else.
As both pilots got out of the hangar, they blinked their eyes because of the high desert sun and unzipped their flight suits. Clark stopped and checked his pockets for his dark glasses. Finding them, he put them on and noticed that Harris had also stopped his march. But, unlike him, he was just looking to another direction, completely immobile. Turning his head to the right he saw what Harris was staring at. On the hangar next to them, a black nose tip was visible through the half-closed doors, in no doubt belonging to a plane.
Then, as the other pilot started heading towards it, Clark wondered what was so special about it and decided to follow him, trying to keep with his pace. They both stopped by the doors and Clark was astonished. A large plane painted in glossy black stood in the middle of the building, but nothing that he had ever seen on his life. It had a sleek fuselage, with an elliptical main body where a delta wing was attached. Twin tails stood out at his end, and the engine nacelles were located on the belly of the aircraft, in the back. It was apparently going through some maintenance procedure. The cockpit was open; with fiber optic cables going inside, and several plates on the body had been removed, revealing electronic equipment and empty space.
"Whoa! What is that?" The words immediately came out of his mouth before he realized his amazement. This plane had to be the ultimate flying machine, capable of going to space and back. Harris' dry voice came with a heavy-filled reply: "The Aurora".
"You mean "the" Aurora? The secret plane that was shot down by a UFO?" When realization of the whole incident came to Clark's mind his attention was immediately turned into the other pilot's expression. The face was completely cold and the scars that marked Harris face and neck looked bluer, as if it had suddenly been drained out of blood. And on the contrary, his eyes seemed locked into some deep anger inside, making Clark step back. "Gezz, sorry! I wasn't meaning to…." Harris deep but now relaxed gaze, made him stop in the middle of the sentence.
Hearing footsteps close to them, both men turned and saw a civilian woman approaching them. She had the white coveralls and the security card she was wearing marked her as a member of the Scientific Bureau, but Clark didn't recognize her. In fact, he knew that for certain since he had long taken a deep inspection of all the base's available female personnel. And this blonde woman, a little shorter than him, had never been on his gunfights. But Clark's initial hopes to get on a date with her were shattered by the annoyed look on her blue eyes.
"Can I help you officers? If not I will ask you to leave" She had quite an interesting accent, German, he wondered? Harris simply asked: "Are you testing the installation of weapons on it?" Her somewhat neutral expression suddenly went into full afterburner. "Wunderbar! Good security protocols here! Tell me, does the base already know, mister…"
"Harris, Lt. Colonel Andrew Harris, m'am". Clark hastily added: "And Captain Clark, here, miss…" She didn't even bothered to look at him as her next words came out in shock. "Doctor…. Johannes. Lt. Colonel, I think Colonel Johnson is better to inform you on why we have the Aurora here. I'm…just…."
"Thank you Doctor. I will not take anymore of your time". He gave her a short salute and left and, after standing there for a second she also left leaving Clark looking from one side to the other, without knowing here to turn. He saw the scientist getting back to work on some bench table while Harris seemed to be heading towards the command section of the base, instead of the aircrew area. Clark decided that the day had been too rough already and went back to his quarters to first get a hot shower before debriefing.
Five minutes later, Johnson was on his office, taking no casualties in his daily conflict with paperwork and red tape. Since the whole X-Com operation was classified above top secret, he had to find ways to have the base up and running, which fake companies to order the most basic supplies, from the mess chow the toilet paper. Fortunately, he had a couple of former CIA officers that performed miracles on that area, but he still had to check and sign the forms. When the knock on the door came he was actually relieved for a minute to get away from all the bureaucracy, but his satisfaction quickly disappeared as he saw Harris walking inside and requesting to speak to him.
Most likely he already knew about the new bird in the nest, so he decided to deal with the whole thing right away. "Sure Harris. Why don't you take a seat?" The other officer stood in attention, not bothering to take one of the chairs Johnson had in front of him.
"No thank you sir. Colonel, if you forgive my straightness, I've seen an Aurora on one of the hangars. Do you mind telling me what is it doing here?" Johnson shifted uneasily on the chair. He had seen the latest psychological assessment made on Harris, and the base shrinks couldn't be sure if the man was stable or could go down the ropes at any minor incident.
"Field tests, Harris. The Scientific Bureau is developing laser and plasma weapons for fighter planes, but they want to try them out specifically on the Aurora. The military had one of the prototypes laying around so they let us have it". Harris nodded. "And where do I fit in that picture?"
Johnson hadn't had time to figure that one out yet. "Well, I don't know yet. You are the only one here who has ever flown that thing and you are the logical choice for test pilot. On the other hand, you are a damn good fighter pilot and this job means no combat for you for a while. President Winston had to put up with a lot of opposition from the Pentagon for lending us. I'm going to return it to them without much of a scratch".
Harris thought for a second. "You are leaving it to me to decide, sir?"
Johnson exhaled. "I have already decided, Harris, if you agree with it. You will be assigned for the next week to fly the Aurora, unless you choose not to. But remember this: if you accept being a test pilot again, that means no going after any alien ship that you encounter. The data from the flights is crucial for us to develop advanced air-to-air weapons. That is your mission".
He simply nodded. "Fair enough, I'll see you later, sir". After throwing a quick salute, Harris left and Johnson decided not to think more about it, as he looked at the pile of paperwork in front of him.
July 9th, 1947
Roswell Army Air Field, New Mexico, United States
The C-47 Dakota transport plane had just came to a full stop on the tarmac as the rear passenger door opened and the brightness of the lights inside contrasted with the darkness of the late hour of the night. A private got out a small metal ladder and, as he stepped to the side two men, one in uniform and another in civilian clothing went down the stairs and boarded a jeep that was waiting for them.
The driver immediately started the engine and drove down a flight line of darkened planes, all having four engines and a myriad of bumps over and under the fuselage. Each plane had its own dispersal area, surrounded by walls of sand bags and in some cases heavy armed troopers were deployed around the plane. The civilian looked at them in curiosity and turned to his companion to ask in deeply accentuated English: "B-29s? The same type that dropped the bombs over Japan? If we had this, you would never be able to defeat us in Europe".
The other man, a young Major that had the left side of his coat filled with campaign and medal ribbons, didn't bother to answer. In fact he couldn't even say anything about the base where they had just landed, since it was the U.S.' top military asset: the 509th Bombardment Group, the only outfit in the world to be equipped with atomic weapons. And it was the center of all the mess that had just appeared and that they both had been sent to resolve.
The civilian realized his unwillingness to talk about the matter or the facility, so he just shot back. "Don't worry Major. After all I live in a golden prison isn't that right? Where could I go and reveal all that I've seen and gave you so far? The Soviet Union?"
The Major gave him a stern look, his hand casually dropping to the belt and the sidearm he carried there. "Doctor, you are only here on an advisory basis, is that understood? You are not allowed to go wondering without escort or discuss anything that you might think you saw with anyone". The scientist simply looked back and went to his coat pockets to find a cigarette. Finding one and after asking the driver for a light, he sat back on his seat as the jeep moved towards a low sand painted building.
The meeting took place on the base commander's office, although his presence wasn't required or even desirable for any of the four men who were present on it. The two recent arrivals were led until the room, where they met two other officers, an Army Colonel with slick dark hair and a mustache and a Navy Commander, but who was wearing a light colored civilian suit and black tie. They all sat down at the meeting table present.
"Gentlemen, we have one, possibly two, 'fallen angels' in the area". The Colonel started, with his forehead slightly shinning from the overhead lights. "The situation seems to be out of control and the Commander also agrees with my….".
"Stop!" The voice of the Major made the German wonder of what was really going around here. But he wasn't supposed to make any questions, so he decided to listen to what the military had to say. "Colonel, this situation has gone out of control already, it seems, otherwise I wouldn't have flown to this desert stinking place. You and Naval Intelligence are only here to help out as much as you can. Because, from now, I will be running this show. Is that understood?"
The Colonel seemed happy to comply with the order, but the Navy officer gave him a hard look. "You can't just keep us out of this. We are the ones with most experience in investigating such cases! Although this has happened over land, we must take control of the operation…."
"Commander," He paused as if giving a lecture. "You will assist in the recovery operations and I will greatly appreciate whatever more information the Navy can provide us. But this has gotten too much sensitive, so we need to start concentrating our efforts in dealing with this matter and not have all the services doing their own investigations".
"Meaning the CIA? You must be joking! No one will let something this big go over an agency that has just been created!" Looking at the whole situation, the German doctor suddenly reminded himself of similar meetings, taken several years ago. The Party, the SS, the Gestapo, the High Command, all fighting for the same. Pitiful how the Americans are falling into the same error, no matter what they might be talking about.
"I will say this only once: the President is about to set directives on the matter defining clearly everyone's position. You can be a part of the team or be out: your choice". The Major simply crossed his arms in front of him and waited for an answer. The other officer shook its head in frustration but conceded. "OK, OK, I'm not going against superior orders. But we have already facilities set in Virginia to deal with the wreckage we have been retrieving from the first crash site…"
"These are all to be transported into Wright Army Air Field at once, using all available planes. And the Navy isn't the only one who has ever recovered one of this things, if you are wondering". The other officer simply nodded, more in shock than in compliance, and he turned to the Colonel. "Now that we have settled this, why did this all got picked up by the media? You were told to have complete discretion over the matter".
"The base intelligence officer was the first to get on the site of the crash. Although he didn't see any bodies, he saw the wreckage and thought it would be better for the public if there were an announcement that the military had finally taken control of one of the strange disks anyone has been seeing around. The story hit the local paper yesterday and since then we have been flooded by requests of information from news agencies and papers".
The German scientist started to wonder what was the whole matter over a simple aircraft crash. He wondered if the Soviets had developed an advanced aircraft capable of over flying the US and if one had crashed. "We will have to deny those claims immediately". The Major thought for a second. "We are close to Alamogordo, aren't we?"
"The Army Airfield? Well yes…". The Colonel became puzzled, but the Major stopped him with a hand. "There are a number of top secret projects over there using balloons. That is what we have recovered here, is that understood? And that's why the intelligence officer will admit to the press that he had made a mistake".
"He will be suspicious of what's going on".
"He will follow his orders, even if they mean he will be discredited. And if someone digs too much into this they will find a classified project using weather balloons, nothing else".
"What about the bodies? What if someone talks about them?"
"We'll have an answer ready for that, don't worry. Now tell me more about what you have found today and that has brought me here".
As the Navy officer and the Colonel looked at one another, the scientist had his attention fully focused on them. The Commander started speaking. "I already had sent a team there. They have found a craft, with four bodies and have secured the location. We will start the retrieval operations tomorrow".
"Very well. Gentlemen, I will need your full collaboration on this if we are to support our countries interests on this matter, which shall never be discussed with anyone…" As the Major kept talking, the German scientist simply stopped listening and decided to wait. He, together with his wife and only son, had been flown into the US upon his capture on the last days of World War II in Nazi Germany. In all appearances he was a guest of the US Government, but he knew that the only thing the Americans wanted was access to the technical data he knew about the advanced aircraft projects that Germany had been developing. He wasn't too enthusiastic about his situation, but he knew that the Russians had also captured a number of scientists and were using them to develop their own special projects. And although he didn't like the Americans much better than Stalin, it was better to be on the winning side or at least on the side that possessed nuclear weapons.
June 11th, 2000
New York Times Building, NY, US
"Blake!" It was on the middle of the morning and Evan Blake had just arrived to the paper after a late night, but the call of the meeting room told him he would just have to completely wake up without coffee. "Get here immediately! He stopped the movement towards his desk and started walking towards the meeting room in one corner of the redaction. When he walked in there, he saw that almost editors where present, which was odd since it wasn't the day for their weekly meeting. Which meant that something big had just came up.
His editor, Phil, who had called him immediately asked him as soon as he had stepped inside: "Have you seen the Post today?"
"Well I just checked in and didn't really had time….". Seeing Phil just pointing a hand towards an edition of the Washington Post that was lying with others on top of the table, he picked up. "Front pages. You seemed to be right all along".
Blake wondered what did he meant by that and quickly flipped through the initial pages, until coming up with a news article whose title made his mouth drop open. "UFO: They are out there. Government studies classifies them as 'probably the manifestations of extraterrestrial intelligence". He kept reading. "According to classified papers obtained by the Post, the Unidentified Flying Objects that have been a part of our imagination for the last fifty years do actually exist. One top secret report, dated from 1998, specifically states that the latest round of UFO sightings can only be attributed to 'some power outside Earth' whose intentions are 'not clear at this moment, due to all the failures to communicate with the occupants of those craft, although all possibilities can be considered at this date". Blake kept reading the rest of the article, but there seemed to be no reference to current operations on the reports they had managed to get their hands on. "A whistle blower. Too bad he didn't decide to leak the information to us".
"I have spoken to someone at the Post who said they will pass copies of the 'ET Papers', as the matter was mentioned on the major networks today, to all of who wants it to check them out. As for their veracity, I've talked to the Under Secretary of Defense today: he didn't confirm it or deny it. The cat is out of the bag and they know it. They are only trying to find a way to get out of this unharmed".
Blake nodded. "What do you want me to do?"
"Forget all other stories. Your top priority goes into this matter. I want to know what else they are keeping away from the public". After ten more minutes, Blake left the room and headed out for his desk, completely awake. He only remembered that he didn't have a coffee yet three hours later, but by that time he hunger inside his bowels made him decide that he should head outside to grab a bite somewhere.
June 12th, 2000
The White House, Washington D.C., US
Dismissing all of his aides, President Winston closed the door of the Oval Office, to be left alone with Vice-President Longstreet and the National Security Advisor, Candace May. Winston and Casper had spent all night thinking of what he was going to say to the US and the world about the situation and how to lessen the effects of it. Besides a local rally or even a riot there wasn't much of a social breakdown as it had been feared, but they all knew that the release of the papers at least showed that the government was doing something about it. There was still some trust into old Uncle Sam, but they knew that wouldn't last long, since they couldn't just deny the veracity of the documents. And if they didn't anything, Congress would and on that moment everything could be on the loose.
But there were other matters to attend as well, regarding the political situation. The VP had just flown in after a pre-campaign travel to the Western states and needed to be informed of the situation. He had the most to loose than all of the men here, since he would be the party's candidate to run for the presidency.
"John, I don't need this at the moment! You have seen the polls, me and Vaughn are closely matched".
"George, we are trying to find the leak, but the best is to not worry too much about the situation. We are going to acknowledge the existence of the reports, but we are only going to reveal that they exist but seem to be only observing us. We will deny the existence of X-Com and only recognize our own military and research efforts in the matter. I have already talked to the other leaders of the Council and they agree on this. We need to keep the panic down".
"But what about Vaughn? He has been informed of the situation also before, but has been kept out of most information. And he has already spoken today of the need to investigate this whole situation fully. This has just turned into an election issue!"
"You need to keep this out as more as you can". The National Security Advisor concluded. "Right now we have everything contained and can even present evidence that we are working in the situation, but we can't have Congress or the press digging too much. We and our allies have already taken measures to contain the release of dangerous information but we need to keep the lid contained".
"That includes X-Com? Why don't we reveal the existence of the organization also? We could use it to show that we are doing something".
May simply shook her head. "You would be recognizing that: first, they are hostile; second, that there's an UN operation running on our territory that we don't have any military control over it; and third, that you knew about all this and took part in keeping it a secret. We already have the whole press going after us. And who knows what the aliens think about all of this. Now you think if it will be good for your campaign to press this matter too much".
Longstreet couldn't think of an answer. He turned to Winston and queried. "Is that what you are going to say later on?"
"I already have the speech written. I also will be announcing that Mark has just turned in his letter of resignation for the Director of Central Intelligence".
"You are turning him into a scapegoat? We know that he isn't responsible for the leak".
May jumped in. "His position right now is unattainable. This has turned into what can be a major scandal and he will recognize on the letter that he had made serious under judgements about the situation which could have lead into a major disaster regarding the situation".
"How can you say that? Mark Casper has been one of the major players on our team during this whole thing. How can we just dismiss him now?"
Winston voice showed his tiredness of the whole thing. "We all here know that George. But, believe we need to present something to the altar of public opinion or they will came after all of us. Mark knows that, yesterday at the end of the meeting he presented his resignation of free will. And we don't need to worry about what he will say to the press. He understands it better than any of us".
Longstreet still couldn't believe it. "So you go out there and give the speech and afterwards we downplay the thing?" Winston simply looked at him. "That's how it goes. We need to let the subject die. We can't risk any more discredit into the government".
Langley, Virginia, US
The mood inside the Agency's headquarters struck Williams as unusual, but he could understand well the feelings. He didn't knew exactly to feel at the leak: for one side it slightly amused him that some of the papers had actually been written by him, although the version that had arrived at the Post had been censored of all names, either by the paper or by the informer. On the other side the whole matter could easily bring social chaos, although there had been no reports of violence and a lot of people seemed to be turning into religion in the last days.
When he had stopped in a gas station to fill up the tank on his way to work, he had listened a couple of college students discussing the situation over the line to pay. One of them, barely looking as if he had just stepped out of high school had simply commented: "So what? Everyone's been listening stories about them for too long. No wonder they do exist!"
Another of the costumers had interjected at the middle of the discussion, a man on his fifties on his way to play golf. "Well son, but what if you actually have to fight ET? Would you do it like I had to in Nam?" The youngsters kept their mouths quiet and Williams could see that everyone was waiting to hear something about the aliens' intentions. And the answers he knew were too far dark and heavy for everyone standing with him on the line to pay for gas.
When he arrived at his office the secretary told him right away that the Director had asked him to meet before the President' speech about the situation. Now, as he walked inside he wondered what they had decided to publicly tell. He had advocated that the majority of the facts relating to the aliens and their intentions to be released, so that all of Earth could be prepared for the storm that one day would come if they didn't unite. No one knew for how long the fight with the aliens would go and government credibility was already at a low, so it would be better to assume the whole thing. And the existence of X-Com also, since it was the only force that had successfully battled the aliens and managed to have achieved some major victories. This had been a covert operation for too long and the difficulties coming from that concealment were more than the advantages now, since the aliens knew now for sure of X-Com's existence after the failed attack on the Japanese base. But he had been kept out of the last night's decision.
Mark Casper had a tired face like the man hadn't slept all night, but he still managed to smile at Williams as he got inside. "Came in, Williams and take a seat please". Both shook hands and Williams wondered what had happened.
"How did it go last night sir? What has the President decided?"
"I passed along your ideas but they didn't pay much attention to them. To be honest, everyone from the military to the other agencies and departments think that the Agency had been having too much predominance on the whole question. The fact that the leak came from our side didn't help us much".
"Sir, that's bs, if you will forgive me. We have been the central point in the whole matter since it started then. They just can't remove us from being at the helm".
"Williams, I was in no position to argue. For a number of reasons I have turned in my letter of resignation for the post of Director of the CIA last night". Seeing Williams' shocked face he continued. "I can't be precise but believe it will be less damaging if I take this step, even though you shouldn't believe everything you will hear about me. We have to regain the public's trust or otherwise our whole government will crumble down and all that we have done so far becomes meaningless".
Despite Williams' inability to understand, he simply nodded. "I see. Are they going to reveal the existence of X-Com?"
The DCI brought his eyes down and shook his head. "No. To be honest they want to show that they have some control over the situation, not that we needed the UN's help on this one. And some nations at the Council had stated that the political situation in their own countries could turn into far worse if that secret was revealed".
"But what is Winston going to say?" The Director looked at his watch and picked up the remote on top of his desk. "It has already started. Hear it for yourself". Pressing a button, a TV set on the other side of the room come live and both men moved to seat on a sofa close to it. The image showed the President standing in the middle of the Press Room, standing behind the blue seal of the United States. He had his reading glasses put on while reading a speech.
"…bringing me here to talk to the American people is most serious. As you might have heard, in the past days a number of government documents have came out to the public concerning the so called 'UFO phenomenon' that have been reported all over the nation. For decades the discussion of extraterrestrial life has gone through our society, as our reason told us it is logical to assume that the same conditions that allow life to bloom on Earth could happen all over the universe. But until now we had no scientific proof, just hints that we might not be alone out there.
But, for some years now we have received confirmation that there are advanced civilizations that at this moment are watching us. This might come as a shock to all of you and some might even argue that we should have kept the information public as soon as we knew. We had our own reasons regarding national security for doing so, but we have acted at all time with the acceptance of the leaders of Congress, your elected representatives.
Like I said before, we know now that some of the unexplained phenomena over our skies are the manifestations of a civilization that can travel through the stars and have taken an interest over our planet over decades. We don't know yet their motives behind it but we are taking the necessary measures to investigate them. They are refraining from establishing communications with us and have done their activities on the planet with discretion.
For the time being I ask you all to maintain your normal lives, since there is no reason to panic. We are constantly tracking their activities over the US and are in close contact with our allies around the world concerning this matter. Our intelligence services and military have been working hard, trying to assess if the aliens are actually a threat. This information leak is a serious crime and the responsible will be brought to a court of law but it has also made this Administration decide that something of this magnitude couldn't be kept in secret anymore.
Ultimately the public has the right to know and it is important that all of you know, since this is the greatest test we might have to pass a nation yet. We are working to resolve this enigma and all of us should be united now so that we can overcome this contact.
Thank you, good morning and God bless us all".
Although Williams already knew most of the ideas contained on the speech, it still gave him a strange feeling inside that he couldn't describe. The whole thing seemed to be more and more out of control, moved by strange forces that he couldn't grasp. And he knew that there was more here that meets the eye on this whole leak business.
"So where do this alien business go from here?" He still didn't know what all of this would mean. The former DCI tried to make things look better than they sounded. "There wasn't much discussion into that matter last night since everybody was more focused on getting out of this political mess. Bottom line is that everyone's neck, including the Republicans, is too deep into this for it to be used as a political weapon. The story being sold to the media is that the government is working and that the alien question should be contained as possible and no rash action taken until we know more about them".
"A gross understatement of what is going on. It will only last until the next terrorist attack on an American city".
"Perhaps but if that turns out a solution will be found. Until then all of the intelligence and military efforts are to continue as planned. They will be only replacing me, the team will still be in place".
Something crucial passed through Williams's mind. "But what about your replacement, sir? Has that been brought up on the meeting?"
Casper made a sour face before replying. "It hasn't, but from what I have seen and heard yesterday, Candace May is the best candidate for the position. I know how you feel about her opinions Williams, but she will tackle the job fine".
"I hope you are right sir, I sincerely do".
June 18th, 2000
Area 51, Nevada, US
The two pilots standing close to the Aurora were getting on Eva Johannes' nerves and she was making a great effort to put up with them. She wondered if the Colonel had deliberately assigned both of them as test pilots to annoy her. Harris seemed more a killing machine than a human, listening to the explanations about the abilities of the laser and plasma cannons her team had just installed into the plane, instead of the reconnaissance gear it would normally carry. The man was exactly what made her get chicken skin about the military: they seemed incapable of feeling any remorse when they were taking lives when they pressed a trigger. Fighter pilots were even worse, it seemed, no matter if Harris had seen his co-pilot die when an UFO had attacked and destroyed an unarmed plane.
And the Captain was even worse. He simply acted, and talked, like damn John Wayne, no to mention he could quite obnoxious with his advances on her. She just couldn't stand the macho attitude, reminding her of some really bad idiots who had tried to go on a date with her on university, although they hadn't been as worse as this one. "So doctor, are you enjoying the United States? Is this your first time here?", he asked from the chair he was sitting, trying again to start a conversation.
"And it might be the last", brushing him off and going back to the specifics of the gear they would be testing later on the afternoon. "We have installed two types of weapons inside the SR-75. The one that we will be testing this afternoon is the laser cannon, developed from our own research. It has a range of about 15 miles and outside that distance you can shoot it as much as you can but the only results you might achieve are blinding a Sectoid's eyes".
Clark wondered if there was a joke there over the things. Harris thought of it for a second and replied: "What's the firing rate and potency of it?"
Johannes' voice seemed as if it raised one tone. "Low, about eight seconds with an energy release on the target a little superior than the one contained inside an Amraam missile. Before you start complaining, these are tests and the Aurora can't generate quickly enough the energy necessary to increase…"
"I get it. What about the other cannon?" Looking at Harris and Johannes. Clark started to wonder what was going between these two.
She replied with a mechanical voice. "High energy plasma release, capable of taking down a Large Scout with a single well placed shot. Close to forty miles of range, firing rate of twelve seconds, for the same reasons as above. Anything else?"
Harris stood quiet and she picked up the speech again. "The test today is pretty simple: both of you will take the Aurora to the test range where we'll check the aerodynamics and, if everything is OK we will try to engage a drone fighter and destroy it. As for…" Clark kept listening, paying attention to the parts where he would be involved, but otherwise thinking of ways to get this ice queen's attention.
July 10th, 1947
Close to Roswell AAF, New Mexico, US
Picking up a canteen that was on the ground of the back seat, the German scientist unscrewed the top and brought it to his lips. He then almost choke on the water as the jeep where he was traveling hit a hole on the dirt road they were traveling. The whole place was just getting to him, too dry and hot for someone who had spent all his life in Central Europe. But he just was too curious about what he would find in the mesa where he, the Major and the Colonel were traveling.
They passed by a number of military checkpoints on the way and he also saw a couple of observation planes up on the air, together with trucks which came from where they were going and seemed to be fully loaded. He had already inspected some of the debris that had come from the first crash site and had found it impossible to determine what the material was. He thought first it was some sort of aluminum alloy, specially developed for aircraft, but the few tests he had performed in the morning completely puzzled him. Although it was as light as aluminum, the metal had unheard of before strength and flexibility.
After asking for some tools, he had tried using a welder and a sledgehammer on a small piece, only to see that the heat and the strength didn't leave a mark on it. And all of it on a small sheet of metal not thicker than a paper sheet that could be bended by one's hand and afterwards return to its previous form by itself. What sort of technology was that?
The Colonel in the seat in front of him interrupted him. "It's over that small hill. We have already removed the bodies to better preserve them since some already showed the marks of small predators and scavengers. But the craft's main body is still there". The Major grunted an acknowledgement and the scientist kept quiet.
When they finally drove to the top of the small elevation and stopped in front of a massive Army tent that had been erected, the Colonel disembarked the jeep and motioned both men to follow him, moving straight through the tent to the other side of it. The scientist followed him closely and when he arrived at the other side he tried hard to keep his shock hidden.
A circular shaped craft rested on the ground below the elevation, clearly the reason why it had stopped there, after traveling for a couple hundred meters on the ground, since there was a large trail behind it. The color of it was gray, the same of the debris he had handled in the morning and he thought he could see view ports on the fuselage. And there were military men all over it, as if they were ants swarming over a dead creature's carcass.
He thought he knew what he was seeing, but he wondered of how it could be here since Germany had lost and all prototypes of the plane had reportedly been destroyed to avoid capture by the enemy. The Hannabu. One of the Fuhrer's special projects to develop a saucer shaped craft capable of going into space. Or threaten any location or country on Earth because of its planned range. This could only mean that the Soviets had managed to capture a Hannabu intact or…. He had avoided taking seriously any of the rumors that said that a number of U-Boats and personnel had left Germany right before its fall, heading for some unknown location where they could continue the fight.
The Major had already stepped down the slope and the scientist went hurriedly behind him. "Doctor, this is why I brought you all along. You are to make a preliminary report on this craft regarding everything you see: fuselage, apparent propulsion system and the flying controls. And I want to know every peculiarity or impossibility it has and any ideas you might have on how this technology works. Are we clear?" He simply nodded and, looking at what seemed to be a door, went through it, too anxious to see the inside of the craft and look for any clues to where it had been built.
Stepping inside and with the Major following him, he immediately was almost overwhelmed by the stench inside, of something impossible to recognize but that had been rottening for a while. Fighting it, he saw portable generators brought by the military that lighted the inside and that there was also a blown up hole on the roof directly over the center. It had close to seven meters in diameter below the hole there was a scorched mark on the ground metal. Something had exploded here and, taking notice of a large slag of metal standing close to one wall, he wondered if that might be the engine. To the left there was what seemed to be the pilot's seats but they seemed too small for a man to sit there. That struck him as curious and he looked for any indications of what the occupants might be but the military seemed to have already removed all traces of them.
The Colonel suddenly walked inside the craft and the Major looked back at him. "I have received word from the base. One of them is still alive!" That phrase brought the scientist's attention and he turned, managing to catch the last words of the Major to the Colonel as both men were hastily leaving the craft. "At least we will know where they came from". The German scientist decided to be patient and not show much attention to that matter. Much was to learn first from here, the rest would come in time.
June 22nd, 2000
NORAD, Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado, US
The late afternoon alert caught everyone's attention on the Air Defense Room and almost made General Bigelow spill his coffee all over his aide. He put down the mug he was holding and looked to see what had the radar systems detected. First he felt a little fear as he picked up the red square moving towards the US and about to cross the North Pole. Then he decided to confront his fears and asked: "Source of the attack?"
His aide had already picked up a phone and put a hand over the microphone as he replied. "Not Russia, sir. This isn't a rogue ICBM. Our northern radars are tracking the target and it fits the radar pattern of an UFO". Bigelow felt relief. The whole facility had been built to detect any aerial attack on the US and, more precisely, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles launched by Soviet Union or any other nation against the US. The majority of its air defense radar grid covered the Artic, the most likely route for any missile aimed at American cities. And the aliens seemed to know it somehow, since the majority of their raids took other routes.
"Sir, our radars are showing it to be a large craft, possibly one of their Terror Ships!" The aide was still holding the white phone. Bigelow turned to another officer manning one console and ordered: "Show me a projection of possible targets, based on present flight path and their estimated hour of arrival. Only the major cities". The man started keying instructions and, a couple of seconds later, a map of the north American continent appeared on the monitor, with blue lines marking states and countries borders. "Denver, four hours; Houston-Ft. Worth, five; Mexico City, six and a half". The General turned to his aide who handed him the phone. "Sir, I have the Secretary of Defense on the line". Before grabbing the phone he turned to the aide and asked: "Scramble all available interceptors and get X-Com online and see if they have picked it up on their net already".
"General, it's going too fast. Our fighters will never be able to caught up with it".
Area 51, Nevada, United States
On the men's showers, Captain Clark was close to finishing scrubbing off all of the sweat and sand he had picked today. He had had worse days than this one, but as the days passed it seemed as if the heat was getting more and more oppressive. And worse yet, the hot weather was having the exact opposite effect on the ice queen, making her more and more picky with things all the time. They had taken the Aurora airborne today again and yet she was constantly asking for data over the radio. It had gotten to a point where Harris had simply told to him: "You deal with her, I'll do the flying", leaving him not only in charge of supervising the tests and keeping a look of things in general but also to having to answer her solicitations.
He was now rinsing off all the soap, standing immobile right below the shower and relaxing as a voice tried to call him back to reality. "Clark! Are you here?" He half-blinked his eyes, unsure if the voice was a dream, until the door of the shower cabinet where he was opened, making his skin tingle from the fresh air that come inside. Looking behind his shoulder he saw Harris holding the door, still on his flight suit. "Clark, haven't you heard me?"
"Do you mind?!" Harris stepped back and he turned off the hot water and asked. "What's going on? Thought we had finished for today". Going out of the cabinet he picked a washed towel from a pile of clean ones. "Get yourself ready as fast as you can. A large UFO has been detected heading towards the south. It's going too fast for our F-22s or the Air Force birds to intercept it. We have been ordered to take the Aurora and try to intercept it".
"Holy shit". He stopped scrubbing. "I have brought your flight suit. Get ready me and meet me at the hangar. We are taking off in fifteen minutes". He then left Clark and the Texan spent the next ten minutes trying to put on the space suit he had just worn the whole day and swearing every time he ran into a problem.
At the same time the hangar to where the Aurora had been towed after the morning flight was swarming with activity as the technicians made the final preparations on the electronic systems and fueled the craft with liquid hydrogen. Colonel Johnson and Dr. Johannes were close to the airplane and the faces of both of them showed tiredness and exasperation.
"Doctor, your recommendation that the Aurora shouldn't be used has been noted. But the fact is that we have detected a possible Terror Ship heading toward us and we need to take it down before it lands in one of our cities".
"Colonel, the weapons mounted upon the Aurora are here on experimental tests. The use of such equipment in combat is full of risks. This project is under my supervision and I can't possibly authorize such a hazardous mission!"
"You don't seem to understand, Doctor. That aircraft is under my command while I'm on charge of this base and I'm taking full responsibility into authorizing such a mission. That plane is getting up. It's the only chance we have to take down the Terror Ship before it strikes".
"Colonel, I don't care about if you are the dictator of this place. The weapons inside that plane aren't going anywhere and specially with that mental case flying it". Johnson shook his head. He had gone through the same thoughts also before deciding to assign Harris to the mission. But the man had handled the Aurora with the same confidence and skill than flying one of the F-22's and he had seen lots of combat after being shot down.
"I had my reservations about Harris, Miss Johannes, but I trust him to do the mission like he has done since he joined X-Com".
"From what I've heard since I arrived here he takes unnecessary risks. I can't allow him to take unnecessary risks while trying to kill the UFO. If we lose these prototypes it will delay the development of these weapons and then you won't have new toys to play with. How would that feel Colonel?"
"He will do his job. I'm trying to save lives here Doctor and yes, I know that there's a risk but I prefer to take it than to hear in the news about how many civilians got killed by the terrorists. Now are you going to check the weapons or do I need to call some guards from Theta to put you into custody?"
Johannes nearly jumped in shock and disbelief. "What?! Are you threatening to put me into prison?" Johnson nodded right afterwards. "Yes. Like you said I'm the dictator around here, in charge of all assets and personnel assigned to this base, even on a temporary basis. Which means that if you persist on that attitude I'll interpret it as a refusal to follow orders and will act accordingly". He kept a stern look to make her see that he was serious about it.
To Johnson, Johannes looked as if she was trying really hard to constrain her. "I'm a member of the Scientific Branch! On my work I report back to Dr. Chevereux not the military!"
Taking notice of Harris, who had just entered the hangar, he decided to call the discussion to an end. "You can discuss the legal technicalities as long as you stay on the brig, Doctor or you can do your work. All I'm asking is for some collaboration and don't worry about Harris". The scientist lowered her head, trying not to look back at him. He decided to give her some moments alone to decide and went by Harris to give him the last details of the mission.
"I've dig up Clark and he's on its way here". Johnson looked at the pilot's eyes, trying again to see if the inner fire that burned inside them was still raging. "Very well. As soon as you're airborne contact the Air Force. They have diverted a Sentry from a training mission and it's about to get the UFO on its radar. And Colonel", he made a pause, "get it down, but bring the Aurora back to the base. If the Pentagon decides to fry me because I've lost their plane your flying days here are over. Understood?" Harris nodded and after wishing good luck to him, Johnson sped towards the base armory.
Close to Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, US
The radar dome placed upon the back of the fuselage of the E-3C Sentry aircraft was slowly turning while the plane kept a northern course, propelled by its four jet engines. The Boeing 707 had been converted to be an airborne platform for the detection of enemy aircraft and to command fighters to intercept them.
Inside, a skeleton training crew had been just stirred by the recent orders to perform an unscheduled exercise just as they had reached operational altitude. The training officer had been too laconic, just mentioning that the base had just ordered them to conduct an interception. That had brought many raised eyes and exchanges of glances from the junior officers for they all had heard the President's announcement concerning the existence of UFOs. But most of their excitement turned into disappointment as the instructors sat on unoccupied consoles and began managing the interception, keeping them away out of the action. Still, some made excuses to get up from their seats and try to steal a glance from what was going on the air.
Over Colorado, US
"Harris, we just got word from the Sentry. The bogey has dropped its height from fifty to forty-five thousand and seems to be going even lower. Speed remains at Mach 4.2". The voice on his headphones made Harris slightly move his eyes to recheck his speed on the glass panel in front of him were his Heads Up Display was projected. The display brought up information at the level of the pilot's eyes, so that he wouldn't need to drop his attention from flying to check for altitude or other data.
"Distance from target at 156 miles, ETA for the target…" Harris interrupted the other pilot who was riding backseat on the Aurora. "I know the ETA. Just make sure that the weapons are ready". A pause came through the intercom but Clark decided to keep his mouth shut, although he wasn't too happy with being strapped to a supersonic plane and being driven around by Harris.
Close to Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, US
The training officer in charge of training flight Sentry Zero Two – Zero Seven didn't know what was worse, keeping the trainees quiet and off the whole affair or dealing with the pilot who was flying the interceptor plane. So far all of his orders to the fighter had been anticipated by the pilot: every time he issued a course or altitude change, the plane had performed as it had been told, only a second too early. It seemed that the pilot already knew what he was about to say and knew exactly what the intruder was performing. How the training officer didn't knew, since he had been informed that Hammer flight didn't had any air interception radar and he doubted that the pilot was receiving any other information besides from him.
The whole matter puzzled him but he had heard a lot of rumors before about the flying disks and US dark aircraft but he decided that it would be best if he just kept a check on the whole operation and tried to keep out of the way. His experience was about directing F-15s against MiGs, not using top-secret airplanes to fight UFOs.
Looking over the radar data displayed on the dark screen in front of him, he saw how the small plane symbol representing Hammer had just completed a long turn clockwise directed to put it on the UFO's six o' clock. The speeds of both craft were incredible to behold: the interceptor was flying at more than Mach five, the UFO a bit slower. Pretty soon it would all be over.
"Hammer, maintain heading at 172. Your target is at 123 miles. Good hunting". As he finished giving the coordinates, the instructor glanced over his shoulders and saw the small group of students quickly moving their attention off him. He gave them a hard look, considering how they should all have a lecture from the base security officer then proceed to direct the pilot of the Sentry about the new heading he should be taking.
Over Colorado, US
Time seemed to be awfully slow for Clark, as he went again through the makeshift panel in front of him that controlled the Aurora's weapons. He didn't want to look at his watch to see how many seconds had passed since the last communication from the Sentry. Harris was constantly giving him data about the UFO's altitude and range, but the radio was the only contact he had with the outside world. The SR-75 backseat that was usually occupied by the photo officer had two small view ports but it had already turned into dark. During the test flights the feeling of being encapsulated hadn't bothered him, but now he wished he was on the cockpit of a fighter, where he could be in control and aware of everything. And another thing that was worrying him was that the Aurora was big and fast but not that maneuverable, meaning that Harris wouldn't be able to throw an roll to evade a shot from the UFO as quickly as he would have from an F-22. Clark was wondered if Harris had remembered that or worse, if he had but still would try to push the plane over the limit.
"Clark, sixty miles. Get the plasma ready". The voice startled him for a second, but his hands moved to the instruments board in front of him, clicking switches and bringing the charge on the weapon up to one hundred percent. "Plasma cannon is live and safety off". He spoke at the end to tell Harris that he could fire the weapon now at will from the trigger located on the top of the control lever.
"Aye. Fifty miles, reducing speed for interception". At that same moment Harris pulled back the left throttle stick to keep a safe distance between him and the UFO. The cannon operation procedures required him to visually locate the alien craft and he was wearing night vision goggles over his helmet to help on the task. And he also had the help of the Sentry's radar, which was informing him of any changes on its speed and altitude. The thing had kept a steady direction from ever since it had been first detected, as if it was in a hurry to get somewhere. And it was his job to prevent that from happening.
The small dot of light had been slowly increasing on the horizon, too low to be a star. And Harris was keeping the circular sight on the center of his HUD right upon it. The cannons line of firing had been aligned with the aircraft's flight path, making the discharge of the weapons a bore sight shoot. The Aurora simply had to be flying right towards the UFO for it to hit.
The range slowly decreased until the Sentry told him that he was at less than forty miles from the contact. At that moment Harris simultaneously cut more power from the engine with his left hand and released the safety switch from the red trigger with an upward move from his right thumb. "Fox Zero", he called on the radio to warn that he was firing.
When he pressed the trigger with his right index finger he was already closing his eyes to protect his night vision from the green flare of the superheated plasma. When he opened them a second later, the light that came from the goggles still made him blink and then scowl as he saw the bolt going over the UFO. "Miss. Speed it up, Clark".
On the back section of the cabin, Clark was permanently monitoring the status of the weapon and going over and over the firing procedures. He wondered for how long this would go on, since Harris had already fired the cannon ten times, managing to score four solid hits by now while the UFO hadn't even fired back yet. Seeing that the light that indicated the status of the plasma cannon had gone green again, he passed back control to Harris.
As the radio started to clatter again, Harris already knew what the Sentry had detected on its radar and was about to inform him. The UFO seemed to be reducing its altitude, but to what purpose Harris couldn't fathom at all. The thing had to be damaged and the wisest would be to try to shake off his pursuer, but it was still holding a parallel course with him. Unless it was preparing to set itself down on earth…. "Clark, get that laser cannon ready. This thing goes down now one way or the other".
Hearing his words, Clark just tried to ignore whatever the other man meant. He just wanted to complete the damn mission and get out of the tin can he was flying in and take a damn shower and grab a good night's sleep and debriefing could wait until the next day. He also made a mental note to remind himself that no woman was worth this amount of trouble.
The UFO continued to drop down in the sky, moving towards a white cloud cover lit by the moonlight and where occasionally a mountain peak would sneak up. It was shaped as an ellipse but it was curved inwards at the center and it was more than eighteen feet tall. The plasma blast that finally brought it down hit it at the uppermost section of its rear, making the whole craft shiver on middle air for a brief second, until the UFO started to drive off his intended flight path to the right and plunge towards the ground on an uncontrolled dive towards New Mexico.
November 5th, 1947
Wright Army Air Field, Ohio, US
The recovered UFO was standing in the middle of a hangar, after having being brought to air base through a heavy guarded train all the way from New Mexico. Some of the less damaged equipment found in the inside had already been dissassembled, although the scientists moving around the fuselage could do nothing but guess at their purpose or even how they worked. But the German scientist wasn't too worried about that at the moment. He had managed to be assigned to group researching the fuselage and their team had done the most progress so far. He had kept secret the fact that he had worked on such craft before, back in Germany, while using the knowledge he had learned from working on the Hannabu project to advance his team's research. His team, in fact, since one month after the work had started, he had been promoted to lead all of the members of the scientific group. The Major was pleased with his work, he had personally made a point of saying it so and the majority of the other scientists were either too dumbstruck at the finding or were uninterested to leading the research efforts. It had been too easy to advance his position, to the point where he was able to start hearing things.
Actually they were more of confirmations to what he had learned from the craft. The initial upon which the Hannubu had been based were bizarre and extremely advanced, leaving Germany unable of mass producing and deploying such craft. But the machine the Americans had captured was even more technologically developed! The Reich had used a highly modified jet engine to power the Hannabu, but this craft seemed to use something so powerful, that he first had considered that it used some of that new atomic energy. But when some of the American scientists assigned to the atomic facilities had seen it, there were at a loss to explain it with the current laws of physics. Even Einstein's Relativity theory couldn't make any sense of it.
He knew neither that the Russians or the English could have developed something so advanced as the craft who had been brought to here. And the origin of the data behind the Hannabu had never been clarified by the high Nazy Party officials responsible for the project. The references he had picked up from the bodies picked up had completed the puzzle for him. Something greater than all the powers of this world was out there on the skies and for quite some time it seemed. He looked up at the catwalk standing right above the craft and saw the Major and the Navy Commander discussing in a small office connected to the aerial corridor. The Major had been made the top boss on the whole matter, but it still amused the scientist to know things that even him had never shown any sign of being informed. That would be useful later.
He headed towards a flight of stairs to go and meet the Major. As he reached the small windowed office, the Commander stepped out, clearly distressed, passing by him without saying a word. When he stepped into the small enclosured area, the military man was lighting a cigarette with a zippo lighter, the yellow and blue flame lighting his darkened face. "Come on in, doc and close the door please".
He did so and asked: "Is everything good?" The Major didn't reply for a second, giving him a hard stare. "I just informed the Commander that his services and those of the Office of Naval Intelligence are no longer required and told him to turn every bit of information they have. He was not pleased".
"Am I being left out of the program also?" The Major took a deep drag of his cigarette. "You might. The President has issued special orders to deal with this subject, following the recommendations of several key personnel, both military and scientific. A special group is going to be created to investigate this matter".
"And you managed to keep a rival to your own power out of it. Is this a test, Major? Are you testing my loyalty to the US? Or is my loyalty to you that it's being tested?"
A small smirk came of the Major's mouth but he quickly surpressed it. "You are smart Doctor, just don't get too smart or we might dispense with your services, either way". The scientist tried to ignore the implict threat. He had dealt with this sort of persons before and knew when to back off.
"Major, to resolve this matter I will offer you a token of my good faith". The officer seemed between amused and serious, as if not believing any of the scientist's false naivete. "I know about the ocupants of this craft, although I never saw their bodies. And I had already seen similar craft to this one".
The Major's face turned serious and he threw his cigarrete to the floor. "I see. And what am I supposed to offer that for that information?" The scientist simply smiled. "Why nothing at all, Major. I have no desire of going anywhere else in the world, or Earth for that matter. My family is here with me in America. I wish only that we can live a happy life here". The Major studied him carefully for seconds. Then he simply asked. "Got any kids?" The scientist relaxed and nodded. "One. He is starting to go to elementary school in Massachussets. He is liking to be here".
André Galvão, 2001